Camo Socks

Camo socks
I have begun breaking in my 72 stitch cylinder and ribber dial and can now make nice men’s socks sized small (shoe size 8-9) and medium (shoe size 10-11). I knit these for my son in his favorite color green that is called “Camo”. His dad wants a pair now too, so it’s a good thing I have more of this yarn. I think they will be very popular! These socks have a 1×1 ribbed cuff and a 3×1 ribbed leg. I am working on a pair with a 2×2 ribbed cuff and leg. It requires a different type of cast on and I almost had it the other day, but when I took the ribber off, I saw that I had missed one stitch on the back half of the cylinder.

I may need to save up for a larger cylinder and ribber dial for large men’s socks, but will get some advice from the other crankers at the Crank in next month at the Cape on whether I should get the 80 or 84 stitch combination.

Do you like my sock stretchers?  I got them yesterday at the estate sale of a weaver.  There was quite a lot of yarn, books, and weaving tools, but I spotted these and snatched them up first thing.  They are vintage men’s stocking stretchers.  Before there was such as thing as  superwash yarn, the wool socks would shrink when washed and needed to be stretched out as they dried to maintain the size. (Since I use a superwash wool/nylon blend, I don’t have to worry about that, and they can even be machine washed on gentle.) I think they are a great way to feature my men’s socks and will look good when I get enough inventory to have a booth at a show.

CSM Ribbing Help

Flat Bent Tip NeedleI was working on a ribbed sock for my son today, and made a couple of videos to help other CSMers.

First, my new favorite tool, the flat, bent tip needle (Bodkin needle).

I would really like one about 2 inches longer, but haven’t found it yet.  This one is almost three inches long.  I use it to help when I am switching to my working yarn with the ribber in place on the my circular sock machine.  You need to thread the yarn into the machine and get it down into the cylinder to knit with it.  This needle is much easier for me to use than a latch hook tool that is fished up from below.  Check out my little video below.

 

Next is a video to show you how I latch up or “pick up” a dropped ribber stitch.   I had a lot of experience latching them up until I got my ribber correctly timed to the machine and the yarn guide placement adjusted correctly.  The only other videos I found about picking up stitches showed how to latch up a dropped cylinder stitch.  So this morning when I dropped a rib stitch when transferring it to the cylinder needle, I knew I would have a dropped stitch to fix when I took the ribber off.  So here it is.

Cleveland Sucks Socks

Cleveland Socks
These Cleveland Browns Socks were a bit painful for me to knit as a die hard Cincinnati Bengals fan. But, my love for my son (also a die hard Bengals fan) outweighed my distaste for the Browns. His girlfriend is from the Cleveland area and is a Browns fan, and I wanted a Christmas gift to give to her. Fortunately, the Browns have had a dismal record this year and the Bengals beat them both times we played them or I might not have been able to overcome the loathing enough to do it. (Mom did say she put a curse on the socks to keep them from beating the Bengals in the future). They lost to Pittsburgh once this year, but maybe the socks will bring them the luck the need to beat the Squealers Steelers in their January 3 game. I actually hate Pittsburgh more, so sorry Juliann (my sister-in-law) there are no Steelers themed socks in your future.

Be Kind To Your Socks

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Now that I am selling more of my Measured Steps socks, I thought I would put up a post about caring for them.  I typically use high quality German sock yarns when I knit.  They are a superwash wool/nylon blend, which means that you can machine wash, gentle cycle and tumble dry on the lowest heat setting if you so desire.  But, I always recommend to hand wash, lay flat to dry or drape over a towel bar.  I use mild shampoo and lukewarm water, let them soak in the sink while I take a shower, rinse and squeeze out water, roll in a towel and press on it get out even more water.  An occasional rinse with hair conditioner is nice too.  If you lay them on a heat vent, they will dry overnight. You can wear them two times before washing if you let them air out between wearings.

They should not shrink appreciably in the washing machine and dryer if you follow the instructions from the yarn company, but there is abrasion in washer agitation and tumble drying which can cause the wool to pill and look worn sooner than if you hand washed your socks. If you insist on machine washing, turn them inside out and put them in a lingerie bag to keep them from rubbing and getting snagged on things. The good thing about the yarn is you won’t ruin your socks if they end up the the washer/dryer by accident, but if you treat them kindly you will keep them looking their best and lasting longer. I also recommend not walking around in your stocking feet in the house. Put some slippers on,e specially if you have rugs (friction again).  Keep your toenails trimmed to help keep the toes from wearing out.  Yes your socks will eventually wear out, but I usually get 3-4 years of frequent wear out of a pair of socks made with good quality sock yarn.

Friendly Socks

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Today I cranked a pair of socks for a friend.  I only had to start the first sock over once.  That is great progress considering I restarted the first sock 4 or 5 times  on my last pair. Of course I was trying to get my tension and number of rows for the foot correct so I was really sampling. I actually had two, perfectly made, complete socks that were ripped out, one too short for my foot and the other too long. I used the same tension settings today for these, but forgot the heel spring and I dropped a stitch in the ribbing that went all the way down so, since the ribbing was too loose, I just ripped and restarted. I adjusted the number of rounds I knit in the foot for a size 7.5 woman’s shoe. The yarn is unknown. My friend Karen lost the label so I have no idea of the fiber content, brand or care instructions. My guess though, is it’s  a superwash wool/nylon blend. It can probably be machine washed warm on gentle and tumbled dry on low, but all sock will last longer if treated a bit more gently by hand wash (I use shampoo) and laid flat to dry. If you are a cranker interested in the details, you can see them recorded in my projects on Ravelry.